Monday, July 14, 2014

Toronto Handgun Ban?

Olivia Chow promised Monday to seek a ban on pistols and revolvers, insisting the country requires more stringent gun control.

Agree or disagree - and most firearms bans, as opposed to registration and regulation requirements, are mere politics - it is absolutely clear that firearms regulation is not a municipal matter. Firearms regulation is primarily a federal matter with some provincial jurisdiction. Municipal by laws dealing with guns would almost certainly be invalid - and a Toronto bylaw purporting to ban handguns would clearly fail. And it is also clear that Ms Chow, as a former member of Parliament, knows that.

A mayor of Toronto can weigh in on many issues - from foreign affairs to the oil sands - but such comments are without any legal relevance.

The best response came from Candidate David Soknacki who called Chow's announcement "content-free."